Cool Stuff – Klassen Makes Wood Sing

I love wood when it is combined with steel and glass. I have posted other beautiful furniture here on Cool Stuff. Here is another work of art from Washington-based artist and furniture maker Greg Klassen.

“I try to marry the natural beauty of the wood with the skilled craftsmanship of the maker. When the two come together, a piece can really sing!” Klassen said.

Klassen’s beautiful lake-like features of desks and tables straddle the line between furniture and art. He seeks out wood with defects and unique features from his local sawmill which he exploits to his advantageby turning them into the focus of each piece he makes. He does it so cleverly that the defects become the art.

Due to his relationship with a local sawmill, Klassen has access to pieces of raw wood, which means that he can make use of its natural forms and beautiful imperfections for his creative furniture. These organic forms lend natural power to the rivers and lakes on his tables, which are completed with custom-cut panes of glass and look much like features on a topographical map.

Aren’t they beautiful? Yes, we are all too far away and they probably cost a lot of money but it is nice to share and look at the pictures; look at what a talented person can make out of ordinary pieces of wood.

Surely a triumph of genius. Only a fraction of designers succeed in finding new uses for old stuff. Many are busy creating things out of newly manufactured material. As a result labs are busier than heads!